The Meridional. (Abbeville, La.) 1856-1906, 1887-12-24
Infamous Traffic in Wo,m..

There is considerable ipte,...
aroused in San Francisco over ill.,
discovery that Chinese women :
being imported into the couD,,.
through that port for Infamous M.
poses. 1t is contrary to law to ad.
NIT Chinese immigrants into hi.
country, but Chinese residents of
the United States are allowed -
visit China and to return to tho;.
homes here, their previous residence
in the United States to be certified
to by the customs officials. It an.
pears that the women are bronoht =
San Francisco on false Certificates
of previous residence through tho
conuivance Of the customs authori.
ties. In the course of an inyes,ic,.
ton going OF there two women who
held certificates Of previous resi-.
dence testified to the fraud. A GIRL
who was named in the certificate a,
the wife of a resident Chinaman
said Il never was in this countrv
before. and was never married. T
can read and write. I do not want
to land in San Francisco, as | know
[ would have to be q bad woman.
want to 60 back TO China, where
nv parents are. Nv right na,no !,
Lon Don Tai"
Another. also certified 10 be the
wife of a Chinaman and a previous
resident, testified : My right navpe
is Kong How Yock. i am ls years
old. l never was married. Nv
father and mother are in China. NJ
home is at Ho Nun, close to Hong
Kong. l do not want to laudi il
San Francisco. want to 90 back
there. My mother sold me for $50.
| will not tell the mans name that
bought me. l do not know lis name.
My brother, Kong All Sun, aged II,
died, and that is the reason my
mother sold me-
According to the statements ola
Chinese Interpreter
There are ten or eleven resident
Chinese engaged in the female slave
trade. Each brings over his
women in lots of from three or four
to eight at a time usually. Some.
times the proprietress Or proprietor
OF a brothel goes over, but ofiener
he or she simply inspects and buys
the Chinese girls after they are
, brought over by the traders. They
are bought in China at yarios
prices, sometimes as low as $l5o,
for old aud ngly ones, aud from This
up to $3.50 and $500. Here ,hev
bring $1,000 for the young aud
pretty ones, while very handsome
ones bring as much as $1,000.
Sometimes ;hcy r kiduaped in
China, but whether sold or kidnap.
ed the women have little to say
about it. Once in a while, when be.
fore the courts here on a mbess
corpus act. the women will manage
!, to inform the court thai they ale
hel! against their will and get of.
Again. when taken to the big hall
or mart in Chinatown. where as
many as thirty in lot are zone.
times exhibited for sale to owners
of brotheIs, the girls will say "loa
better look out how bny the. | don't
want to 60 in vour bad honse. I'LL
run away. Ill give you treahle.'
And they know. too. they had bet
ter not hny them. But to bring them
into Subsection the people who have
llIem for sale beat them and knock
them about. They whip them into
it-starve them, may be, till they
give in.
: About the Chinese merchants
counteuancing it, they don't nave
anything to do with it, and don't
say much abeut-just let it 60 along
not taking any interest in It Que
way or another. The women arc
bought or kidnapped in Hong hoae =.
or other large cities. A. widow lr
instance, in China, too poor to sup
port her family of seven or elen'.
will sell her daughter, or borro.
500 on her, say for a year, but :.
the end Of the year the slOo cant "
paid the girl belongs to the no.
who lent the money, the same 40
house held on a foreclosed mo't
gage. al.